Broken Wings
by Tantopat
Summary: Based on Cirque du Soleil's Varekai. This is the story of Icarus, Castor, Pollux, the Limping Angel, and the fall that caused their lives to become forever intertwined. Please excuse the rather bad summary...


Disclaimer: I don't own Varekai, Cirque du Soleil, or any of the other characters or anything else to do with Varekai and Cirque. They're owned by...who ever owns them by law. I'm just an ordinary (very broke) girl, so please don't sue:P

A/N: I went to see Varekai over the weekend, and loved it, especially the storyline (and Dergin Tokmak and the Atherton twins! They were amazing:D ). This is basically my interpretation of what happened, and of what I imagine might have happened in the story that wasn't shown onstage. So anyway, enjoy! - (And hopefully I may actually finish this fanfic, which will be a first for me... :P )

He could see the fall. Against the bright midday sky, a solitary figure plummeted downwards, his cries for help unheeded by his father, who flew just a few metres ahead. He reached out in his sleep, trying to catch the falling figure in his dreams, but to no avail. He gasped in horror, praying that somehow the burning of the figure's wax wings would subside, and the young man would be able to fly back up again and escape certain death. However, the prayers went unheard, and the man continued to fall, winged arms flailing as he dropped into the ocean, instantly swallowed by the waves.

Crying out, the Limping Angel sat bolt upright, heart pounding as he struggled to clear his head of the images that had flooded it just moments ago. He shut his eyes tightly, shaking his head in an attempt to wake himself up fully. As he ran a hand through his hair, trying to slow his heavy breathing, the Limping Angel shivered slightly. His eyes fluttered open again and he glanced around, taking in the interior of the cave he called home. His crutches lay undisturbed by his bed, and there were no signs of anyone having entered save for himself. Still, something felt wrong. The dream had seemed so real, and the Angel was sure that it was a sign of something to come. Yawning widely, he reached out for his crutches, slipping his arms through the cuffs and hauling himself up. Using the crutches to walk, he made his way to the edge of the cave, and continued through the thick forest, heading for the beach. Stars shone brightly down onto the calm ocean ahead of him, making it shimmer in the darkness like a billion diamonds stretching out into the horizon.

"Whoever you are, be careful," he whispered under his breath, as his thoughts travelled back to the youth in his dream. "And if you do fall, I...I'll catch you. I can't promise anything, but...I'll try to help you." Sighing lightly, he closed his eyes, breathing in the sea air. Even now, as he listened to the waves gently lapping against the shore, he could feel it coming, whatever it was. _Not long now..._

"It won't work."

"It will!"

"Won't..."

"I'm telling you, it will! Now shut up!"

"It still won't work..." The Faux Lion shifted about on the tree stump that he perched on, rubbing his numb leg for a few seconds to try and revive it. He glared half-heartedly at the Skywatcher, who seemed oblivious to his lone spectator's increasing restlessness. The eccentric inventor scurried around his half-built contraption, pushing tubes and wires into every crevice in the strange machine's body. The Skywatcher grinned to himself as he reached up, adjusting the makeshift speakers that protruded from the top of the contraption. Finally he stood back, his face falling slightly. Close behind him, the Faux Lion snorted.

"I told you it wouldn't work," he chuckled, shaking his head. The Skywatcher shot him an indignant glare, then quickly turned back to his invention, peering at every part of it in succession. Curiosity finally getting the better of him, the Faux Lion bent over the modified cart in front of him, pushing his short tentacles out of his eyes as he gazed down at a box that hung from the side of the cart by a couple of tubes. He picked it up tentatively, turning it over in his hands as he studied it.

"Drop it!!" The Skywatcher yelled suddenly, seeing the pale pink creature toying with the box. Startled, the Faux Lion cried out, hands crushing the sides of the box as he jumped. "Aargh..." The wiry inventor growled and stormed towards the creature, ready to snatch the component from his hands, when he paused suddenly, straining to listen. Birdsong filled the clearing, coming from the contraption's misshapen speakers. The Skywatcher laughed elatedly, pulling the confused Faux Lion into a tight bear hug.

"You did it! My soundmachine is complete!" He cried, plucking the box from the Lion's grip and looking down at the sides of the box. Two hand prints were visible in the splintered wood, where the pink forest creature had almost crushed the box. Laughing again, the Skywatcher placed the box back at the machine's side, stepping back to circle it once more. The Faux Lion shook his head and turned away, springing through the trees like a kangaroo as other creatures flocked to the source of the noise.

The Limping Angel looked up, startled from his reverie by the cries that sounded some distance from where he was. The fallen angel sat perched on the highest branch of an old oak tree, gazing out over the forest towards the rough sea. Somehow he knew that today would be the day. He knew that the dream was a message, a sign of things to come. And something told him that those things were already coming.

The branch that the Limping Angel sat on creaked slightly as something landed softly onto it. Castor, one of the twins of Gemini, placed a hand on the tree's thick trunk to steady himself, his pale face creased into a frown as he followed the Angel's gaze over the horizon. He turned back to his friend, the black feathers framing his face ruffled in the wind.

"You look lost in thought," He stated matter-of-factly, lowering himself down into a sitting position on the branch. The Limping Angel's eyes flickered over to Castor briefly, before turning back to watch the sea once more.

"Last night, I thought I saw something that may happen today. In a dream," he added, as Castor opened his mouth to voice his confusion. The birdman nodded thoughtfully as the Angel continued. "A young man will fly over the sea, but he will fall. He'll cry out, but no one will come to his aid...he'll just...fall..." He trailed off, fear and concern etched into his features as he recalled his dream again. Castor's expression softened as he noticed his friend's nervousness, and he smiled.

"Don't worry old friend," he said reassuringly, reaching out a hand to grasp the Limping Angel's shoulder. "It was probably just that; a dream, nothing more. Or maybe Pollux is planning on going too far with his 'stunts' yet again..." The Angel half-smiled at this, thinking of Castor's twin brother. Despite the fact that they were identical twins, the two birdmen couldn't be more different. However, his smile faded as he thought back to the dream. He knew that it was more than just a dream somehow, and the boy that he saw definitely hadn't been Pollux.

"Look," Castor began, interrupting the Angel's train of thought. "If it makes you happy, I'll go get Pollux, and we'll check the surrounding area, just to be sure that nothing is coming." With that, he took off into the clear sky, soaring on the warm breeze as he sought out his brother. The Limping Angel watched his friend glide through the clear sky, and tried to convince himself that the twin was right, and there really was nothing to worry about. Still, he couldn't help but inwardly pray that if something were to happen, they wouldn't be too late to stop it.


End file.
